The Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program of the National Science Foundation (NSF) supports active research participation by undergraduate students in any of the areas of research funded by the National Science Foundation. REU projects involve students in meaningful ways in ongoing research programs or in research projects specifically designed for the REU program.
The NSF REU Site at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), the Geophysical Institute (GI), supports eight undergraduate students to participate in the research activities of faculty members in the field of Atmospheric Sciences during an exciting and rewarding summer session of ten weeks between May 28 to August 10, 2012. The GI is an institution of worldwide renown with a broad expertise in all major fields of geosciences and geophysical research (theme: From the Center of the Earth - to the Center of the Sun). This expertise places the GI well in introducing undergraduates into the various topics of up-to-date research performed at the GI. Introducing the undergraduates in the broad field of Geosciences will be achieved by a REU seminar with topical lectures given by the faculty of the GI.
The second, main objective is to make undergraduates familiar with life and work at a research institute in the Arctic. For these purposes, various REU students forming a team will be assigned a well-defined research project that the group can successfully handle and finish as a team within ten weeks. Research themes for the summer 2012 sessions are:
- Numerical experiments with the coupled multi-layer atmosphere-canopy-soil Module HTSVS-UCD to quantify the exchange of momentum, sensible and latent heat and trace gases between the atmosphere and canopies of tall vegetation (team advisers: Res. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Gerhard Kramm and Prof. Dr. Dr. habil. Nicole Mölders).
- Theoretical and numerical investigations of free convective conditions over Interior Alaska during summer (team adviser: Res. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Gerhard Kramm).
- Modeling the wind fields over Interior Alaska to find optimal conditions for establishing a wind farm (team advisers: Res. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Gerhard Kramm and Prof. Dr. Dr. habil. Nicole Mölders).
Each team will be supervised by a mentor who will introduce the students into the specific details of the research project. The mentor, the PI and the mentor's graduate students will be available for help and support for the entire ten-week period. Thus, each REU student will experience how research and research teams work in the real world.
Preference will be given to REU students expressing a strong interest in Physics and Chemistry especially with respect to the atmosphere, Calculus, Statistical and computational work, and numerical simulations. Student grades in Calculus, Statistics, Atmospheric Science, Physics, and/or other natural science disciplines will be examined.
Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action: The University of Alaska is an equal employment opportunity/affirmative action employer and educational institution. Women and minorities are encouraged to apply. Applicants needing reasonable accommodation to participate in the application and screening process should contact the local Human Resources office
